


Original One-shots

by LadyHallen



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Demi-Gods, Demons, Elves, Fairies, Gen, Gods, Mages, Magic, Witches, fae, suicide spells
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:22:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27410380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyHallen/pseuds/LadyHallen
Summary: My Original Works, one-shots or otherwise.
Relationships: Original Female Characters & Original Male Characters
Comments: 5
Kudos: 23





	1. The Adventures of Jess and Mo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jess and Mo have been partners for a while. It's the first time they've been approached by a home-witch before.

She had dark hair, dark eyes and tanned skin. She was a slight, short woman carrying a plain, forgettable staff with her. In point of fact, everything about her was forgettable.

Mo still didn’t know what it was about her that made him sit up, the very hairs at the back of his neck stand and every instinct he had pay attention. He supposed it was the way she looked at him.

And then she spoke, “You’re a demi-god?” a pleasant voice, no-nonsense and slightly distracted. She was a home-witch

Mo straightened up from his slouch, giving her his full attention. Beside him, Jess closed her book and stood up.

“Yeah,” Mo said. “You the home-witch of this town?”

She nodded, looking agitated. “I need your help.”

Mo exchanged a look with Jess. That they would help, that was without question. They were uneasy because home-witches rarely asked for help.

Home-witches, also called witches, had a subtle magic. Nobody knew what it was that they did, exactly, but it was generally understood that having one in whatever place they chose to settle in was a good thing. Cities and towns with home-witches just felt more alive.

To further the mystery, nobody knows how they happen, just that there are always home-witches in places and settlements filled with people.

Mo had seen a town once where the home-wtich had died. He had never left in as much as a hurry as he did then. He had never felt unsafe in a town like that and he never wanted to again.

“What’s the problem?” Jess asked. Her hand was tight on her sword.

The home-witch led them to a side road and eventually to a small space between buildings. A pile of…something rotted there.

“That,” the home-witch said irritably. “It’s hurting the city.”

“Trash?” Jess asked.

But Mo had looked at it through his god’s eyes and knew, without a doubt, that it was a carrier. A carrier of disease, curses or calamities. Cast by a mage at the expense of their own lives and sent to wreak havoc in the world.

Mo stepped in front of Jess and shielded her from the wave of magic it emitted. He gagged and asked his god to close his sense of smell for an hour, relaxing when the prayer worked.

“That is not a pile of trash, Jess,” he scolded her. “It’s a – “

“Carrier of disease,” the home-witch interrupted. “An immature one.”

Well, that was the good news. The bad news was…

“How do we get rid of it?” Jess asked.

Mo winced when the home-witch glanced at him incredulously. Right. There was a reason why the home-witch asked him if he was a demigod.

“A prayer from the phoenix god’s son should work,” the home-witch answered after several seconds of staring at Mo.

Let it not be said that his companion was slow. Jess rounded on him incredulously. “I thought you said your father was some minor fire god?”

Mo winced again at the reaction, as well as the grumbling of his father that he could hear in his head.

Downsides of being a demi-god, his head was rarely _quiet_.

“I said fire god, I never said minor,” Mo corrected. “And it’s just easier if I misdirect.”

An involuntary shudder worked its way through him. Sons of the Phoenix God rarely had happy lives.

Jess scowled at him but didn’t press. She had read that book too.

Mo knelt to pray at a bit of a distance and the home-witch and Jess flanked him. Just in time too, as the carrier stood up and shrieked.

Fuck, but it was close to maturing if it could walk.

“God of the Healing Fire,” he prayed quickly. “God of the Eternal Flame. Greatest of all Fire gods and Gentlest of all the gods. Fire of the hearth, warmth of my soul. Father of this devoted servant.”

Slowly and steadily, the god’s voice in Mo’s head got louder and louder.

“Child, you are heard,” the god rumbled.

Mo’s shoulders sagged minutely. He had prayed to his father thousands of times, but sometimes, an answer just wasn’t in the cards. God’s were fickle wasn’t just a phrase.

“Father, dearest of my heart, may I ask for help in cleansing this carrier?”

When Mo opened his eyes, head reeling from his father’s roar of approval, he blessed the holy fire that engulfed him. The carrier, whose claws had been an inch from his face, immediately caught fire.

Jess’s rapier stabbed the carrier in the back of the head before he could warn her not to do so. The home-witch gave an aborted yell of warning in his stead.

It was too late though, and the holy fire travelled up through the sword and up to Jess.

“Father!” Mo shouted with his heart in his throat.

His father heard, and the fire died before it could do more than tickle Jess’s hands.

Mo stood up in a hurry, rushing towards his friend and went to touch her hands, fingers fluttering an inch from her and wondering if he was allowed.

“I’m fine,” Jess said. She looked pale and nothing at all like her usual self. Mo wanted to vomit, because only demi-gods could touch the holy fire without dying. He took a deep breath and tried to stomp at his over active imagination.

To distract himself, he looked around and started.

Fine black ash covered the floor, a larger quantity than he usually saw when carriers were cleansed. Signs of battle, he mused, and he knew Jess had absolutely no skill in magic. What on earth did the homewitch do? He wondered.

“Thank you, demi-god. And swordswoman,” the homewitch said, interrupting his thoughts. “If that had matured, I would have been unable to kill it. The city thanks you.”

Jess nodded, sheathing her sword. The absence of adrenaline meant Mo had to hold the wall in a hurry. Blessings were incredibly tiring.

“The name is Jess, home-witch,” Jess said, to Mo’s alarm.

He shot a quick look at her and realized that yes; she did know what she was doing, sharing her name to a home-witch.

With a sigh, he said, “Movandrick. Call me Mo.”

The home-witch’s eyes were wide.

“I am honored to hold your names,” she said. “I am called Wren.”

They belatedly shook hands. Jess looked bemused. Mo just shook his head. Years and years of avoiding kinds, dukes and lords. Years of skipping out on awards just to escape honors. And all it took was one home-witch to catch Jess’s attention.

“Sorry to ask this,” Mo said sheepishly, feeling his stomach trying to eat itself. “But do you have anything to eat?”

The home-witch, Wren, looked startled, before laughing. She looked years younger. “Yes, of course. Come with me.”

Jess and Mo shared a look and followed.


	2. Alice and the Sentient House

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alice doesn't know what she is, only that she is something _other_. But three weeks before the elections, her senses start screaming to hide.

Three weeks before the elections, Alice woke up with the nagging need to move to her grandmother’s house.

It was a nice house, but simply too large for one family to have. Just simply, impossible large. Alice had once tried to catalogue all the rooms in the house but just lost count. It was as if the house itself didn’t like to be measured.

Alice got used to inanimate objects having opinions of their own. It wasn’t so bad and at least if you treated them right, they wouldn’t object to being used. It was a side effect of having taken too strongly from her grandmother.

She had a feeling that nagging need to move into the house was another quirk of her blood. Her mother never could explain it properly, other than _knowing_ more than people.

So, with just that urge, Alice packed up her bags for a weeks clothing, all her documentation that labelled her as having something _extra_ and moved out of her tiny apartment.

Her landlord, a man with cat-yellow eyes, sighed.

“Must be something important, if you have to do it without any prior notice,” he murmured. He was one of the few people who knew about her. Being part of the Other community, people often knew everyone else. Mainly for self-defense.

“I don’t know if it’s a calling,” Alice said. “But…there’s a need? I don’t know. A need to hide.”

The landlords eyes were wide. “Alright. I’ll spread the word.”

Alice wished he wouldn’t. While there would be some people who would appreciate the warning, there would also be others who didn’t like false alarms.

“Alice, you’ve never actually given me false alarms before,” he reminded her. “Now, stop being modest and get moving.”

Alice nodded, feeling a little bit better. “Just remember, I’m not a Seer,” she repeated, feeling the need to reiterate things.

“Yeah, you just know.”

Alice gave up.

.

* * *

.

The house was situated in the middle of the city. It was a large, sprawling land bracketed by fruit trees and large, rustling grass. Even if it was in the middle of the city, the trees were tall enough and thick enough to block sound and make it seem isolated.

In the middle of it all was the house.

Wreathed in spells, the windows blurred as though it was moving. It made measuring things difficult. If Alice didn’t already know that the house was sentient, she would have believed it after spending a night inside. The bathroom tended to rearrange itself according to how she liked it.

“I’m here, I’m home,” she called, opening the door that didn’t even pretend to be locked. It swung invitingly open, like it had just been closed and not closed for a good twenty years. “Stop calling, I’m here.”

The chandelier flickered and turned on.

“What’s the problem?”

The lights turned on, one by one until Alice could clearly see what was lit and what wasn’t. The house was leading her to the library and she followed, leaving her bag on the sofa by the fireplace.

It was clearly agitated and it showed. By the time Alice reached the library on the second floor, the lights _blazed._

On the bookstand by the door, a book was open and being flicked to and fro by the wind. She took the hint and bent close.

“ _Of all the creatures that witches spent battling_ ,” she read aloud. “ _Demons are the worst. Banished to the Otherworld by the Coven of Witches in the year 1905 after the disaster that was the Spanish Influenza. They are characterized by their yellow eyes and the scent of sulfur that follows them. They also have an aversion to cats._ ”

Alice breathed deep, trying not to panic.

“But,” she whispered. “The UCO just declared demons to be a myth. If the Coven of Witches did this and then scattered afterwards, that leaves a mark on the World. Why would the UCO declare demons to be a myth?”

Alice had no answer and the house rattled around her in agitation.

.

Since the house was clearly averse to letting her leave the house – as evidenced by the doorknob that wouldn’t twist open and the trees that suddenly blocked her way outside the gates – Alice made herself at home.

She picked a bedroom, almost jumped out of her skin when she found the drawers to be full of clothes her size and even felt her eyebrows climbing when she saw the pantry overflowing with food.

Evidently, it had prepared itself for her arrival.

“Thank you, that’s very thoughtful,” she said.

The windows _preened_.

Half-forgotten lessons with her grandmother resurfaced and Alice ended up baking cookies. The scent wafted up to the third floor and the house actually felt lived in. She knew the house appreciated it by the bubble bath it drew up when she headed for bed.

.

* * *

.

On Alice’s third day, when she was arguing with the house on whether she could go outside and get some other supplies, the doorbell rang.

She paused in the act of wiping the glasses and glared at the nearest mirror. “This discussion is not yet finished,” she declared.

Opening the door, she found herself face to face with a petite woman, glossy wings protruding from her back and an energetic smile.

“Hi!” the half-fairy greeted. Alice knew she was half since her skin wasn’t green. “I saw your ad in the internet and wondered if you were still hiring? I’m a good cook and can work around substitutes in case of allergies and Other problems.” Alice blinked at her. The woman didn’t even pause. “I can also bake and clean and sew. So anything is really fine. I just need a place to stay. The cats are all saying their fur is standing up and – “

“Wait, wait, just stop,” Alice said, trying not to shout. Fairies didn’t like sudden loud noises. “Why are you here?”

The woman looked bewildered. “You posted an ad in the internet asking about housekeeping.”

Alice sighed and pulled the woman inside. Once they were seated inside the kitchen, Alice glared at the mirror. “You posted that ad, didn’t you? I thought I told you not to do things like these without asking?”

In response, all the drawers in the kitchen, which had been obligingly opened once Alice took out the polishing rag, drew shut.

The half-fairy goggled. “The drawers just moved.” She stated carefully.

Alice sighed again. “It has a mind of its own. Most things do, when they spend enough time around me. And the house was likely the one who posted the advert too. Most probably, it convinced my laptop to do it. People,” she said loudly. “We have consent issues. Didn’t we have this discussion when I was fifteen?”

The woman laughed, a gay and infectious sound. “You must have some sorcerer blood! They’re the only ones I know that can do that, even by accident. So can I work here?”

Alice nodded. “Why do you want to work for food and lodging anyway?”

“But that’s just it,” she said seriously. “Anyone who has a drop of Other in them are hiding. Apparently, someone with Seer blood said to be careful or something.”

Alice had the feeling she could blame her old landlord for that. But…

“Wait, where did you find my advert?” she asked, feeling dread.

The woman obligingly rolled out a printed sheet and Alice felt blood drain from her face. “Is that Facebook? And the UCO page? And that…”

“The official chat room for the Other community,” she supplied. “I was really lucky to get here first. I think there’s going to be a lot more people coming here.”

Alice dropped her forehead to the table and she couldn’t even hurt herself since the table softened to avoid hurting her.

“Oh my god. What are you planning, you crazy house?” she muttered.

.

The half-fairy woman’s name was Susan and Alice set her to cooking or baking.

It was amazing to have conversation that actually talked back.

“This was your grandmother’s house?” Susan asked. “Wow, it’s amazing the UCO hasn’t seized this yet.”

Alice shrugged, trying to peel the apples. It was slow going since she didn’t particularly like holding anything sharp. “I think they tried?” she said. “I remember a year when Mum was going gray about grandmum. She and dad had a spectacular row about it.”

“It’s really well taken care of,” Susan said. “Especially the garden. I really like your trees. There’s something…different about them.”

Since Alice had seen them move and walk around, they definitely weren’t ordinary trees.

.

Alice’s next applicant was an elf, pointy ears and all.

She stared at the man when he volunteered to be the gardener.

“Pick a room,” she said. “There’s a lot.”

“My name is Samuel,” he said, a melodic trill in his voice. “Thank you for sheltering me.”

Alice blinked dazedly at him and then marched determinedly up her room to continue arguing with the laptop about taking down the adverts. She didn’t need more people.

.

Even with the advert being taken down, people still arrived in staggering, slow numbers.

After Samuel came three more elves. They all took care of the gardens. A werewolf and his mate, a half-lizard. They started a vegetable garden – which struck Alice as ironic since werewolves and lizards didn’t like vegetables and were as carnivorous as possible.

Then came the pixies who roosted in the Roof Gardens and only came down to steal some desserts. They did amazing cleaning and swept the house of any dust at night when everyone slept.

Two gnomes arrive, bringing with them one earth nymph and two tree nymphs. Alice, at this point sits down with Susan and tries not to pull out her hair.

“How am I supposed to feed an earth nymph and the gnomes?” Alice hissed at the fairy. “Aren’t gnomes vegetarian?”

Susan giggled. “It’s a good thing Erik and James have just harvested their first crops then. It’s like fate. You gather such amazing people, Alice.”

It definitely wasn’t Alice’s doing. She merely stared at all the people arriving and kept worrying.

Meanwhile, the elections draw closer.

.

* * *

.

The first time Alice sees a cat when she’s doing laundry, she dismissed it as unimportant. Its green eyes stare at her, and then seemingly finds her suitable.

The next time she sees a cat; there are four of them sunning themselves on a patch of sunlight in the library.

“Okay, this is definitely not normal,” she said with a frown.

The cats ignore her.

.

Two pairs of vampire mates arrive and seek sanctuary. Alice tried not to cringe when Erik eyes them up.

“Please don’t fight,” she pleaded. “The house will definitely get angry.”

At that statement, the pixies that were watching the proceedings by the roof beams, gasp.

The vampires paused and Erik goes still.

“I’m not fighting them,” Erik announced. “But I’m not going to make any promises if they mess with my vegetables.”

The vampires nod at him regally.

“What can you do?” Alice asked before someone else exploded. Vampires tend to make people irritated. “We can sort your books. And do repairs. We also brought with us some animals. We know you like fresh milk and we can get blood from the cows as well so it balances evenly for us.”

Alice tried not to laugh out loud. Vampires volunteering for animal husbandry. Vampires volunteering to be repair men.

.

* * *

.

Marcia, one of the most well-known in the Other community, shows up and it nails the coffin to how weird her life is.

Because Marcia, White Mage extraordinaire, just volunteered to be her librarian.

“I can also help raise defensive spells,” Marcia adds at Alice’s flummoxed silence, mistaking it for hesitation.

“That’s fine,” Susan interjects for her. “But...”

The words, _why are you here_ remains unsaid, but the White Mage hears it anyway.

“I did a divination spell once the warning reached me,” Marcia says, like its _normal_ for someone to manage a divination spell and have it work. Gosh, it’s blowing Alice’s mind. “And my results said that the best place to be in right now is the house of a Witch.”

Her houseguests look at Alice in interest. The words take a while to penetrate.

“But!” Alice says with surprise. “I’m not a witch! I mean…I don’t think I am? I can’t work with plants for shit and my empathy is out of whack. I don’t have a green thumb!”

Marcia finally looks confused, which makes Alice feel better. There are finally two of them suffering here.

“I do agree that an affinity with plants is a sign of a witch, but you are so obviously magical and good with witchcraft that it’s affecting everything around you, even non-living things,” the White Mage says. “The cats agree with me,” she adds, pointing out the three cats twining by her feet.

Alice, for the first time in a while, finally knows what she is. And she doesn’t appreciate it in the slightest.

.

* * *

.

On the day of the election, the camera pans to the president candidate and Alice almost jumps a foot in the air when his eyes turn yellow. Not dragon-gold or cat-yellow but demon-yellow.

An instinctive revulsion rises up in her and Alice finally understands why she had known to hide.

Because demons had finally come back from their banishing and Alice was one of the few Witches left in the world.


End file.
